Dreaded COVID-19 struck Madhya Pradesh, which was left untouched till now by the pandemic, with vengeance on Friday with four cases confirmed positive at once.
Jabalpur district collector Bharat Yadav confirmed to THE WEEK that four persons tested positive on Friday evening and have been hospitalised. Isolation measures of their families and people they might have come in contact with was underway, he said.
Three of the confirmed cases are from same family who had returned from Dubai two days ago. The fourth case is of a person who returned from Germany, the collector confirmed.
District administration sources said that after details of their travel history was sent by the Union government, these persons were hospitalised and their samples sent for testing. The results came in this evening, making the four the first cases of COVID-19 in Madhya Pradesh.
Health department sources said that till now about 45 samples have been tested, but only four found positive. Over 900 persons were under observation during the past week, of whom over 300 were given clear signal. Around 150 persons are said to be in home isolation across the state, sources added.
The Madhya Pradesh government has already declared COVID-19 as a notified infectious disease, which makes it legally binding for people with symptoms or travel history to report to the authorities. Educational institutions, malls and public places have been shut down, though the normal shops are still functioning. People, especially in big cities like Indore and Bhopal, have however started taking precautions, using masks, sanitisers and many not venturing out unnecessarily.
